Garment check pocket



1955 J. D. NIELSON GARMENT CHECK POCKET Filed Oct. 1'7, 1951 5SFJE. 1.2 5

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3nventor: JOSEPf/Q A051. 50., u C z '5 r,

I I? M W Gttornegs.

2,726,402. Patented Dec. 13, 1955 GARMENT CHECK POCKET Joseph D. Nielsen, Layton, Utah Application October 17, 1951, Serial No. 251,680

Claims. (Cl. 2-247) This invention relates to garment check pockets, in other words, pockets which serve in the manner of check valves. v

The principal object of the invention is to prevent the loss or accidental removal of articles or money from a pocket of a garment when the wearer is seated or is in a reclined position.

Another object is to provide a pocket structure which is formed of a plane piece of material, thereby making the finished pocket simple and efiicient in use and relatively inexpensive in cost.

Other objects too, will become evident during the progress of the following description.

A feature of the invention is a self-contained check element which permits an unobstructed entry of a wearers hand into a pocket, while at the same time guarding against the accidental egress of articles that maybe placed in the pocket.

The check element is so designed and positioned in, for example, a trouser pocket, that the outer wall of the pocket is bulged, whereby a concealed and expanded mouth leads into a hidden cavity.

The entrance from the outside into the pocket, is located in practically any customary position. From this entrance a direct passage extends into the pocket proper, while a switch passageleads from the direct passage into a blind compartment. Articles which may be slipped into the pocket, are automatically switched into the blind compartment instead of retracing the entry travel, if and when there is a tendency to invert the pocket.

In the accompanying drawing, which represents an excellent embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 illustrates, in p1an, a development of a one-piece configuration of the material from which the pocket is made, the inside surface of the pocket being shown;

Fig. 2, a fragmentary portion of Fig. 1, in which the check flap has been turned over into its normal position, as a step prior to the completion of the pocket structure;

Fig. 3, a face elevation of the completed pocket ready for sewing into a garment;

Fig 4, substantially the same as Fig. 3 after a portion of the outer or near wall has been torn away to partly expose the interior;

Fig. 5, a section taken along the line 5-5 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6, a fragmentary elevation showing the pocket in the wearing position in a pair of trousers, portions of the trouser and pocket being broken away for clarity.

Fig. 7, a fragmentary face elevation showing a way of applying the check flap to an existing garment.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral denotes the developed configuration of the cutting pattern of a piece of goods out of which the pocket is made, that is to say, the blank of material as prepared for folding and sewing into the finished pocket. In this pattern, the panel por tion to the right of the line is divided by the line 11 into the symmetrical half sections or wall panels 12 and 13, which form the pocket proper as stitched along their edge margins in the final shape, leaving a gap for the pocket entrance. A check flap 14 may form an integral part of the half section or inner wall panel 12, or it may consist of different material and be sewed to 12 substantially along the line 15. It is to be observed that the top line 16 of 12 is in alignment with the top line 1'7 of the half section or outer wall panel 13, but that the top line 18 of flap 14 deviates from the line 1617 toform an obtuse angle 19 in Fig. 1'. This leaves a protruding triangular portion 20, which is trimmed oif. The inclined or biased raw edge 21 of flap 14 is preferably hemmed, as shown at 35, Fig. 4, or otherwise treated to have substantial stiffness.

In bringing the various parts of the prepared blank of material into the finished pocket form, the corner portion 22 of the flap 1'4 is'turned over to the right and brought substantially into coincidence with the line 16-17, preferably at about the midpoint 23. This creates an outward bulge in the flap 14, the tendency of which is to keep the flap away from the inner wall 12. Thereafter, the half 13 is turned over toward the left until the corner portion 24 coincides approximately with the point 25. When so assembled, the parts are brought together and sewed along the top edge margin, as indicated at 26, Fig. 3. At the same time, the lower portions of the pocket are sewed together along their edge margins,-

as indicated at 27, Fig. 3, leaving the entrance gap 37 unsewed. It is to be noticed that, when so folded and secured in pocket form, the portion 12 constitutes the inner wall of the pocket, and the portion 13 the outer wall thereof, and that such inner and outer pocket walls bulge outwardly from the flap 14, see especially Fig. 5.

In order to provide an easy entry into the pocket and to establish a check line, the flap 14 is stitched to the outer wall 13 along the line 28. The pocket is now ready for sewing into a garment, such as a pair of trousers 29, Fig. 6. This sewing may be done as usual along the line 30' of the waistband 31', and along the line 37 of the receiving opening for the pocket.

Since Fig. 1 shows the inside surface development, it is obvious that, when the flap 14 is turned over to the position in- Fig. 2, the near surface of the flap in Fig. 2' actually shows what is the far surface of the flap in Fig. 1. This is to be particularly noticed, because a feature of the invention is to make the near surface of'14 in Fig. 2,

which is liable to be largely exposed to view through the entry opening 32, Fig. 6, correspond with the material of the garment. Thus, making the flap 14 of the same fabric as the garment, shows a uniform cloth surface, instead of the different surface of the pocket, which latter frequently consists of a lining fabric.

In use, the entrance to a pocket is subject to spreading open, thus exposing a portion of the interior and making difierences in materials conspicuous. This is avoided by the means just described.

Articles (not shown) when put into the pocket through the entrance 32, as usual, naturally slide over the outer or near surface of the flap 14, as indicated by the arrow 34, Figs. 4, 5, and 6. When, however, the articles (not shown) tend to slide out of the pocket, such articles, because of the check line 28 and the bulge in the wall 12, are deflected and pass naturally under the edge 35 of flap 14. As a result, the articles, instead of leaving the pocket, are caught in the blind space or inner safety pocket 36, Fig. 5, between the flap 14 and the bulging wall 12. The finished edge 35 is the raw edge 21 after hemming.

When it is desired to remove articles from the pocket, the users hand is the dominating factor, and serves to easily draw the articles through the space between the flap 14 and the outer wall 13, Fig. 3.

Obviously, Fig. 6 shows a pocket on the right-hand side 3 of the wearer, the pocket being stitched to the garment approximately along the lines 30 and 37, as usual.

It is important that the lower portion of the check flap, at the pocket entrance, be stitched transversely, as at 28, to the near pocket wall 13, Figs. 3 to 6, between which and the blind retention space, the check flap constitutes a partition. This means that the retention space or inner safety pocket 36 is located between the check flap and the body of the wearer, and contributes to the certainty of functioning of the parts defining that space.

In Fig. 7, the check flap 38 is substantially triangular in configuration, and is designed to be used with pockets of existing garments. Here, the side edge 39 is stitched as at 40, to the inside or far wall 41 of the existing pocket. The flap 38 is brought around the side 39, first, to where the top side 42 comes approximately to the position 43, thus making the obtuse angle 44. Now, pulling 42 into substantial alignment with the top 45 of the existing pocket, produces the desired bulge. The side 46 of the flap is left free and unattached excepting for stitching at 47 which corresponds to stitching 28.

In both embodiments, it should be noted that the length of the biased edge or margin of the check flap is shorter between its opposite points of attachment than is the inner pocket wall between these same points, resulting in the bulge of such inner pocket wall relative to the check flap, as mentioned hereinbefore.

What is claimed, is:

l. A check pocket for garments, comprising, in combination with inner and outer pocket walls disposed in substantially face-to-face relationship and secured together marginally in pocket fashion leaving a side entrance gap, an internal check flap of substantially triangular configuration, said fiap having one margin thereof secured to the inner pocket wall longitudinally along the said pocket entrance gap, another margin secured along the top margin of said inner pocket wall, and another margin biased across the pocket, opposite said pocket entrance, to form an inner safety pocket between said flap and said inner wall, said safety pocket having its entrance along said biased margin of the flap; and means securing the lower portion of said flap to the outer pocket wall, transversely of said pocket.

2. The combination recited in claim 1, wherein the said securing means is a line of stitching.

3. A check pocket for garments, comprising, in combination with inner and outer pocket walls disposed in substantially face-to-face relationship and secured together marginally in pocket fashion leaving a side entrance gap, an internal check flap of substantially triangular configuration, said fiap having one margin thereof secured to the inner pocket wall longitudinally along the said pocket entrance gap, another margin secured along the top margin of said inner pocket wall, and another margin biased across the pocket, opposite said pocket entrance, to form an inner safety pocket between said flap and said inner wall, said safety pocket having its entrance along said biased margin of the flap, and said biased margin of the flap being shorter between its opposite points of attachment than is the said inner pocket wall between the same points, resulting in a bulging of said inner pocket wall away from said flap; and means securing the lower portion of said flap to the outer pocket wall, transversely of said pocket.

4. The combination recited in claim 3, wherein the pocket is formed from a single blank of material, having a panel portion folded along its middle to provide the said inner pocket wall and the said outer pocket wall in mutually coextensive face-to-face relationship, with their top edges being rectilinear extensions of each other, and having, further, a triangular flap portion laterally adjoining the panel portion as an extension of the inner pocket wall section thereof, and folded over between the inner and outer pocket wall sections of the panel portion of the blank to form the said check flap of the pocket, the top edge of the triangular flap portion of the blank being a downwardly biased extension of the top edge of the panel portion of the blank, but the top edge margins of the inner and outer pocket wall sections of the panel portion of the blank and the top edge margin of the triangular flap being secured together, with their respective edges in mutual registry, and the lower edge margins of the inner and outer pocket sections of the blank being secured together up to the triangular flap portion.

5. A prepared blank of material for making a garment check pocket, comprising a panel portion adapted to be folded along its middle to provide an inner pocket wall section and an outer pocket wall section of mutually similar configurations; and a triangular fiap portion adjoining the inner pocket wall section, corresponding end edges of said inner and outer pocket wall sections providing rectilinear extensions of each other along one edge of said panel portion, and said fiap portion having one free edge forming an extension of said end edges biased toward the opposite end edges of said pocket wall sections, and another free edge intersecting the inner pocket wall section intermediate its height.

References Cited in the file of this patent V UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,415,299 Blower May 9, 1922 1,850,827 Charles Mar. 22, 1932 1,942,410 Charles Jan. 9, 1934 2,421,695 Henson June 3, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 419,478 Great Britain Nov. 13, 1934 

